Ryan Craig News

Movements in the world of hockey Monday: National Hockey League TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING-Re-assigned F Ryan Craig to Norfolk .

"Everybody recognizes that the safety of the players - and I think that we've seen more of that so far this year - is a high priority topic for the general managers," Lawton said.

Commissioner Gary Bettman said he planned to "chat" with Lightning co-owner Oren Koules during Monday's game with the Coyotes, but he offered little new concerning how or when the organization's ownership saga will end.

After a run of six consecutive starts, Antero Niittymaki will take a seat tonight when the Lightning visit Jobing.com Arena outside Phoenix tonight .

Ryan Craig and Matt Smaby re-assigned to Norfolk by the Lightning Though the announcement came on Monday with the move happening on Sunday, the Lightning has sent Ryan Craig and Matt Smaby back to Norfolk of the AHL.

Coach Rick Tocchet said he didn't know what to expect from David Hale after the defenseman was acquired in July from the Coyotes in the Radim Vrbata deal.

It may not amount to anything. If Drew Miller doesn't work out with the Wings, then nobody is going to remember what Ken Holland did on Wednesday.

The league will study whether it should ban hits to the head. But Lightning coach Rick Tocchet said a better idea is eliminating the instigator rule, which penalizes players who intentionally start fights.

It was big news when it happened. When then-Canucks defenseman Mattias Ohlund broke a bone in the left leg of Wild star Mikko Koivu with a two-handed slash, there were threats of retaliation in what already was a testy rivalry between the two teams.

The Hockey Hall of Fame's class of 2009 has received its rings. Steve Yzerman, Luc Robitaille, Brian Leetch, Brett Hull and New Jersey Devils executive Lou Lamoriello picked up their jewelry during a morning ceremony at the Hall.

It would have been easy for Ryan Craig to sulk when demoted to AHL Norfolk near the end of training camp.

The Tampa Bay Lightning have recalled forward Ryan Craig from their AHL affiliate in Norfolk.

Goaltender Antero Niittymaki is playing very well right now. Mike Smith, not so much, especially on the road.

Coach Rick Tocchet reiterated there could be roster changes in the not-so-distant future if the Lightning did not pick up its intensity, especially on the road.

Although the Crunch power play has been struggling recently, the other half of the special teams has turned it on, as the club has killed off 15 consecutive man-advantages against, including killing off all 10 penalties against them in Sundaya s contest at Adirondack.

Crunch captain Derek MacKenzie has had a quite a knack for scoring shorthanded goals throughout his career.A In fact, he made quite a splash in his first-ever Crunch game on October 5, 2007 @ Rochester by scoring his first goal as a member of the Crunch while down a man.

Tampa Bay hasn't been very competitive in its last two games. A visit from San Jose isn't likely going to get the club on track either.

Brandon Bochenski's goal with 14:06 left in the third period broke a scoreless tie as Norfolk defeated Manchester 2-0 for its first win of the season before a crowd of 2,948 at Scope on Saturday.

Saturday 03 Oct 2009 Saturday, October 3, 2009 at 02:08AM MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com-NORFOLK, Va.

There was speculation the Lightning would go on austerity this season. The rumor was Vinny Lecavalier and his $10 million salary would be traded and payroll would be in the low $40 million range.